CRN India (Vol.2, No.7) October, 2019

Edit

Vol 2. No. 7 October, 2019 Chairman of the Board Viveck Goenka

IOT – A KEY COMPONENT OF DIGITAL TRANSFORMATION

T

Sr. Vice President - BPD Neil Viegas Asst. Vice President - BPD Harit Mohanty Editor Srikanth RP* Sr. Associate Editor Sudipta Dev Sr. Assistant Editor Nivedan Prakash Delhi Sandhya Michu Vishwas Dass Mumbai Abhishek Raval Mohit Rathod Salvi Mittal

Nivedan Prakash nivedan.prakash@expressindia.com

Bengaluru Moumita Deb Choudhury DESIGN Asst. Art Director Pravin Temble Chief Designer Prasad Tate Senior Graphic Designer Rekha Bisht Layout Designer Vinayak Mestry Photo Editor Sandeep Patil DIGITALTEAM Head of Internet Viraj Mehta MARKETING Ravi Nair Prabhas Jha Durgaprasad Talithaya Debnarayan Dutta Ajanta Sengupta Deepak Patel Praveen Soman Vivek Thakur

he Indian enterprises, be it government or private, are already matching pace with the global companies in adopting emerging technologies like AI, ML, IoT, and Edge Computing among others to drive new business models.

Talking specifically about IoT as a disruptive technology, the increasing use cases clearly suggest that organisations are looking at this technology as a key enabler to drive their digital transformation journey.

For instance, India’s leading natural gas distribution company, Indraprastha Gas Ltd. (IGL), has been a pioneer in using IoT technology for managing the infrastructure, frequent bi-directional communication with meters for billing, payment collection, gas reconciliation, etc. It has moved from manual post-paid metering solution to IoT based smart gas metering system that underpins strategy to boost efficiencies and enhance customer experience.

Similarly, Otis Elevator Company is using IoT and data from the largest service portfolio in the world to enhance its ability to actively monitor and predict maintenance needs for each individual customer. The company’s engineers are working to develop the next

generation of elevators – ‘smart’ elevators.

As the county is leapfrogging into deployment of IoT, it also offers a plethora of opportunities for solution providers to deploy this technology at a large scale to bring efficiencies and economies of scale. In fact, these players are not only acquiring the right skills, but also focusing on collaborating with different technology partners to provide customers with a holistic solution.

Given the potential of the IoT market, new players are vying an entry into the ecosystem. One such category of players is the IMS service providers for whom IoT is the next logical step having deep expertise in managing multiple infrastructure projects and associated hardware installation.

The growing adoption of IoT is also prompting cybercriminals to create a thriving marketplace for certain IoT-based attacks and services.

While IoT attacks are still in their infancy, it is being found that people with malicious intent are already discussing how to leverage industrial equipment for the same gain and It is time for organisations to be ready to protect their Industry 4.0 environments.

IMPORTANT

Circulation Mohan Varadkar

Whilst care is taken prior to acceptance of advertising copy, it is not possible to verify its contents. The Indian Express (P) Ltd. cannot be held responsible for such contents, nor for any loss or damages incurred as a result of transactions with companies, associations or individuals advertising in its newspapers or publications. We therefore recommend that readers make necessary inquiries before sending any monies or entering into any agreements with advertisers or otherwise acting on an advertisement in any manner whatsoever.

Scheduling Arvind Mane

Computer Reseller News® REGD. WITH RNI UNDER NO. MAHENG/75607/2018.

PRODUCTION General Manager B R Tipnis Production Co-ordinator Dhananjay Nidre

Printed and Published by Vaidehi Thakar on behalf of The Indian Express (P) Limited and Printed at Indigo Press (India) Pvt.Ltd., Plot No.1C/716, Off. Dadoji Konddeo Cross Road, Byculla (East), Mumbai 400027 and Published at 1st floor, Express Towers, Nariman Point, Mumbai 400021. Editor: Srikanth RP * * Responsible for selection of news under the PRB Act. (Editorial & Administrative Offices: Express Towers, 1st floor, Nariman Point, Mumbai 400021) Copyright © 2017. The Indian Express (P) Ltd. All rights reserved throughout the world. Reproduction in any manner, electronic or otherwise, in whole or in part, without prior written permission is prohibited.

COMPUTER RESELLER NEWS I OCTOBER, 2019 I crn.in I 3

Content

5 | Cover Story

15 | Cover Story

What IOT means for channel partners

ATTHE CUSP OFAN IOT REVOLUTION From the public sector to private enterprises, diverse industry verticals in India are set to leverage intelligent connectivity of smart devices. On top of it, IoT combined with drone, AI, blockchain will provide a comprehensive view and contextual intelligence into the scheme of things

Channel Chief 20 | Hitachi Vantara co-creates market dynamics with its channel partners Anupam Nagar, Senior Director – Channels, Alliances, Hitachi Vantara 22 | ‘By 2019 end, our goal is to have 20-25 partners who can generate 80% of our business’ Anand Shringi, Channel Head – South Asia, Kaspersky 38 | ‘Our objective is to develop the existing partners in India’ Filip Cotfas, Channel Manager, CoSoSys

When it comes to solution providers of IoT, collaboration is the essence. A report on how solution providers are going about implementing IoT and Industrial IoT in India

News Analysis

Association News

19 | IBM’s Red Hat acquisition unleashes the business value of cloud for partners Lata Singh, Director – One Channel, IBM India / South Asia

30 | Will PC brand owners protect its offline channel from online predatory pricing?

28 | AWS intensifies focus on public sector Rahul Sharma, Country Director, Worldwide Public Sector, Amazon Internet Services

26 | Schneider Electric sees huge opportunities at the ‘Edge’

29 | Lenovo’s commercial PC business gets bigger and stronger Stephen Sequeira, Director, Commercial Named Account Business, Lenovo India

Partner Corner 24 | RAH Infotech pioneers information security value-added distribution

4 I COMPUTER RESELLER NEWS I OCTOBER, 2019 I crn.in

Event

32 | Irishtey2.0: Empowering the partner community 34 | Explore Bharat: Coimbatore scripts a big success 36 | Indore promises digital opportunities for SMBs and partners

Cover Story

IoT

AT THE CUSP OF AN IOT REVOLUTION From the public sector to private enterprises, diverse industry verticals in India are set to leverage intelligent connectivity of smart devices. On top of it, IoT combined with drone, AI, blockchain will provide a comprehensive view and contextual intelligence into the scheme of things

COMPUTER RESELLER NEWS I OCTOBER, 2019 I crn.in I 5

Cover Story

PUNE IoT PLAN: CITY DATA EXCHANGE AND USE CASE DEVELOPMENT KEY TO SUCCESS The top priority for the Pune Smart City Development Corporation Ltd (PSCDCL) is to see the data sets from all the departments - IoT and related environment (CCTV, drone, social media, departmental data) are pooled and this cross functional data is leveraged for different functions

Abhishek Raval abhishek.raval@expressindia.com

P

une has deployed over 1000 IoT devices (including 1500 CCTV cameras, which are quasi IoT devices), connected with the integrated command and control centre (ICCC).

The data feeds are regularly relayed from the sensors. Going ahead the many use cases will need to be explored. Pune is working with IISc and IIT Kanpur for use case development, for example, the

availability of parking spaces in the city can be easily identified from sensor data; traffic movements in the city can be tracked and appropriate actions relating to reducing congestion can also be taken based on data relayed from the sensors.

Pune is the only city in the country to have participated in a global hackathon, wherein the API based technology architecture allows to expose the data in a secure manner globally to create applications over it.

6 I COMPUTER RESELLER NEWS I OCTOBER, 2019 I crn.in

Cross departmental data to provide contextual intelligence The top priority for the PSCDCL is to see the data sets from all the departments - IoT and related environment (CCTV, drone, social media, departmental data) are pooled and this cross functional data is leveraged for different functions. “The data formats have been standardised to some extent and have been congregated in the city data exchange (CDE). This data is exposed through APIs for developing applications. The

IoT

CDE is a marketplace of datasets available publicly and shared by the external environment after partnering with PSCDCL. This is a PoC for which Pune has been selected by the Government of India. The navigation technology provider TomTom has signed an MoU with Pune smart city to share their real time traffic and map data. Currently, one OEM and a startup has joined the exchange,” informs Manojit Bose, Chief Knowledge Officer, Pune Smart City Development Corporation Ltd (PSCDCL). The data from the ICCC is also on the CDE. According to the Smart Cities Mission website, clean environment is one of the important characteristics of any smart city. Pune has deployed environmental sensors in select areas to track pollution. “Pune has tied up with IIT Kanpur to analyse data from 50 environmental sensors and other related datasets. Currently, we are able to develop heat maps of the areas. Subsequently, the pollution data from environmental sensors is displayed on variable messaging devices (VMDs) deployed at strategic locations in the city. Advisories are issued accordingly, for example AQI levels are high in certain areas, and citizens are advised to wear masks while travelling,” says Bose. However, this data is inadequate to reason-out why certain areas have more pollution. Efforts are on to collect datasets related to traffic and construction to give a near comprehensive view on pollution and how can it be reduced.

Sensor placement The sensors are placed at strategic locations based on the suitability of the kind of data to be collected. They are at places based on the uniqueness of the sensor. The flood sensors are placed on bridges, low lying areas; CCTVs are placed at traffic signals; WiFi hotspots are placed at highfootfall areas like railway stations, airports, schools, hospitals, industrial areas, etc. “The flood sensor will not be placed where an environment sensor is and vice versa. This can apply to multiple sensor types. Indian Institute of Tropical Meteorology (IITM) has their sensors placed in the city. It’s made sure our sensors are not placed there,” states Bose. The environmental department of the Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) is consulted on where to place the sensors.

“We are also opening a CoE in Pune that will have high end NVIDIA GPUs, over which we will run our own analytics,” informs Bose. PSCDCL has invested over Rs 155 crore on the ICCC and IoT infrastructure. It’s important to focus on network, security and interoperability in IoT related technologies.

The Pune smart city had organised a hackathon to devise IoT applications based on a uniform standard. “The Government of India has taken cognisance of this and very soon, the standards on smart city will be released, which will also have IoT related standards,” mentions Bose.

The CDE is a marketplace of datasets available publicly and shared by the external environment after partnering with PSCDCL. This is a PoC for which Pune has been selected by the Government of India Manojit Bose, Chief Knowledge Officer, Pune Smart City Development Corporation Ltd

FINALISING AN ENTERPRISE ARCHITECTURE BLUEPRINT FOR THE CITY ◗ City data exchange ◗ Use case development ◗ IoT device data

communication protocol and security should be focused upon ◗ Interoperability between

IoT devices is paramount ◗ Vendor lock-in should be

avoided ◗ Important to decide

on IoT application development standard

COMPUTER RESELLER NEWS I OCTOBER, 2019 I crn.in I 7

Cover Story

IGL BOOSTS OPERATIONAL EFFICIENCY WITH IOT BASED SMART GAS METERING SOLUTION By implementing the smart metering solution, IGL has been able to eliminate human errors caused by manual meter reading, optimise capacity planning and improve cash flows Sandhya Michu sandhya.michu@expressindia.com

I

n line with the Government's aim to expand city gas distribution coverage to cover 50 per cent population of the country with PNG connection target of 10 million by 2020, publicly traded city gas distribution entity Indraprastha Gas Ltd (IGL), is embarking on an ambitious network expansion plan, by moving from manual post paid metering solution to IoT based smart gas metering system that underpins strategy to boost efficiencies and enhance customer experience. India’s leading natural gas distribution company with over 11 lakh customers base has been a pioneer in using IoT technology for managing the infrastructure, frequent bi-directional communication with meters for billing, payment collection, gas reconciliation, etc.

LoRaWAN - the IoT platform The main challenge IGL faced was in terms of monitoring and measuring the consumption of gas per meter.

Some of the other concerns were the use of existing post-paid technology solutions such as locked premises, estimated/wrong billing, reversal of bills and tampering of meters. Today, IGL has been able to eliminate human errors too due to absence of manual

meter readings. IGL was the first CGD company in the country to deploy LoRaWAN Internet of Things (IoT) network.

IGL is mainly using Tata Communications’ IoT infrastructure based on a network that has been specifically designed for IoT devices such as smart meters. As a result of the low energy consumption, smart gas meters can be installed independent of the main power source – with a battery life of up to 10 years.

By moving from manual process of collecting data to smart meter technology, IGL has exhaustive control of consumption through constant monitoring and analysis, rapid detection of leaks and breakdowns, fraud and manipulation detection, etc.

8 I COMPUTER RESELLER NEWS I OCTOBER, 2019 I crn.in

It further lowers operational cost and makes the complete process less labour intensive.

“The IoT enabled smart gas meters enable customers to monitor their gas use more accurately in real-time against available credit. Gas meters are equipped with intelligent sensors to measure the gas volume efficiently and valve to cut-off in case of lowcredit. Meters are in sync with our IoT base stations to update the status in real-time to the application server. We have also deployed analytics-based solutions which help predict lean or heavy seasons, forecast for festive seasons, monitor customer behaviour, etc., which results in cost reduction by better planning for gas purchase and leading to optimisation of resources,”

IoT

DIGITAL INITIATIVES FOR CNG AND PNG CUSTOMERS ◗ Pilot for payment through PayTM at CNG stations initiated for the first time ◗ Upgarded IT software-SAP modules like CRM, BI analytical reports introduced ◗ SLAs/TAT defined and being followed strictly for resolution and escalation of all complainants

◗ Remote price change of CNG dispensers at IGL CNG stations ◗ Access to vendors into bill watch system for online information/status of bills ◗ File tracking systems for expediting internal MIS ◗ Dashboard generated for MIS reports ◗ Field workflow automation making the modification services paperless for ease of PNG customers

◗ Spot billing and self billing introduced for PNG customers ◗ E-tendering for fast procurement introduced ◗ Use of RFID technology for tagging and recognition of assets

says E S Ranganathan, Managing Director, Indraprastha Gas Limited.

Talking about the IoT platform, Alok Bardiya, Head, Internet of Things (Business Unit), Tata Communications, a utility supplier says, “We have a super low-power, secure, bi-directional, communication solution, which any organisation can use to connect objects and innovative applications in a simple and energy efficient manner, overcoming high power consumption challenges with existing wireless solutions. It is further simple for organisations to deploy, as it is pre-configured with plugand play connectivity for different industries.”

For IoT applications and solutions to perform effectively and efficiently, it is critical for devices to operate on low power consumption which can be achieved with the help of a supporting platform and network. The critical component is also handling of massive data generated by each meter over the cloud for analytics which can help IGL take business decisions on preventive maintenance with prescriptive and predictive analysis which help optimise the O&M costs.

Earlier, IGL was using the traditional system where a meter reader used to take down the meter readings and punch it on the SAP and then a bill was

generated. So that was good when it had two-three lakh customers. Now, with the current 11 lakh of customer base, the old methods have to be replaced with latest technology. “We hit upon the idea of prepaid smart meter. This was very well received by the people, and when it is prepaid online consumption of continuous data is needed. With connected meters, IGL is leveraging on the IoT platform in increasing safety and also improve the customer service. Reporting and attending of gas leaking cases turnaround have been reduced from 40 minutes down to 20 minutes. From vehicle tracking system, CCTV, using of RFID technology for tagging and recognition of assets, etc., have further been built on using this platform,” Ranganathan states.

Sharing the digital roadmap for the next two-three years, Ranganathan informs, “Today, we are the only city gas company which is growing in double figures. So, we expect to grow at a rate of at least 12-13 per cent every year. We are adding three lakh customers a year.

So, from 11 lakh we can reach 20 lakh customer base in the next three years.

Then all meter readings for industrial commercial will be done online. We are developing a central controls centre in Kakanagar.”

We have also deployed analytics-based solutions which help predict lean or heavy seasons, forecast for festive seasons, monitor customer behaviour, etc., which results in cost reduction by better planning for gas purchase and leading to optimisation of resources E S Ranganathan, Managing Director, Indraprastha Gas Limited.

IoT enabled smart gas meters enable customers to monitor their gas use more accurately in real-time

COMPUTER RESELLER NEWS I OCTOBER, 2019 I crn.in I 9

Cover Story

THE MANY USE CASES OF IOT IN TELANGANA Telangana had implemented its IoT policy in 2016. Rama Devi Lanka, Director - Emerging Technologies, Officer on Special Duty (OSD), ITE&C Department, Government of Telangana speaks about how different departments have either implemented IoT or are exploring an use case by doing a PoC or are studying the technology

Abhishek Raval and Moumita Deb Choudhury abhishek.raval@expressindia.com moumita.choudhury@expressindia.com

T

elangana launched its IT policy in 2016, which had identified eight focus areas: blockchain, AI, IoT, cloud, 3D printing, VR/AR, robotics and big data. A separate policy was announced for each of these areas.

The state has a three pillar policy

THE DISASTER MANAGEMENT CONTROL PORTAL HAS BEEN ABLE TO REDUCE THE NUMBER OF DEATHS OCCURRING DUE TO HEAT WAVE USING INFORMATION RELAYED FROM THE 885 SENSORS DEPLOYED ACROSS TELANGANA

10 I COMPUTER RESELLER NEWS I OCTOBER, 2019 I crn.in

on IoT. These three pillars are: ◗ Develop world class infrastructure for IoT products: The Government of Telangana has setup T-Hub, an incubator for startups and it has the necessary arrangements to mentor startups on the hardware and electronics related to many areas including IoT. T-Hub provides state of the art prototyping capabilities.

Moreover, ancillary facilities like early stage funding, mentoring and other necessities are fulfilled. “Although

IoT

this began as a facility specific for hardware startups, one of the main areas that was focussed was IoT,” says Rama Devi Lanka, Director Emerging Technologies, Officer on Special Duty (OSD), ITE&C Department, Government of Telangana. ◗ Promote manufacturing and procurement of IoT based solutions: A custom facilitation cell will be set up to seamlessly clear processes to import products. The Government will back the electronics component distributors to set up electronics component distribution centres in the state.

The IoT products and services will

IN THE FUTURE, DRONE, IOT AND AI WILL BE USED TO TRACK AND ISSUE ADVISORIES ON CROP. DRONES AND IOT WILL CAPTURE THE DATA AND AI WILL BE USED TO RECOMMEND ACTION TO BE TAKEN

also be procured from the startup companies. The required permissions will be provided by the state for doing connected PoCs in the zones of Hyderabad, Warangal and Tiruchirappalli. ◗ Provide startups to raise capital: T-Hub helps startups to get access to markets and capital. IoT is a key area of focus.

IoT use cases in Telangana ◗ IoT in the Police Department: An integrated traffic management system is being implemented for the police and law enforcement department. It’s an Automatic Counter and Classification Traffic (ACCT) software that adjusts traffic signal timings after calculating the speed and volume of traffic. It’s done by an algorithm based on IoT and AI. Secondly, IoT is being used for penalising riders

jumping signals. It’s being done through the automatic number plate recognition system. The challan given to the rider also has a photo attached, when the violation happened. ◗ Agriculture: For the department of agriculture, a pilot is being run in precision agriculture using drones. Data from the satellite, water availability, climatic conditions and drone data about the crop characteristics, helps in releasing advisory to farmers on when and which crops to sow. “I have personally visited a pilot conducted in a village in Nalgonda district. The farmers were really happy after applying these technologies, which saw the yield increase in the farms,” says Lanka. In the future, drone, IoT and AI will be used to track and issue advisories on crop.

Drones and IoT will capture the data and AI will be used to recommend action to be taken. ◗ IoT enabled predictive maintenance and vehicle health management solution: A recent use case is on using IoT for engine management for Telangana State Road Transport Corporation (TSRTC). “There are many cases of the buses unable to reach their destination because of engine failure. Soon, PoC will be done on how IoT can help in predictive maintenance of engines for the buses of TSRTC. These solutions are all planned to be procured from startup companies,” mentions Lanka. ◗ Disaster management: The disaster management control portal has been able to reduce the number of deaths occurring due to heat wave using information relayed from the 885 sensors deployed across Telangana. The information from global systems is also used for the prediction. The temperature in Telangana can go upwards of 45 during summer and weather advisories become important for the citizens.

The Karimnagar Municipal Corporation has deployed sensors to measure the air quality index (AQI).

There are many cases of the buses unable to reach their destination because of engine failure. Soon, PoC will be done on how IoT can help in predictive maintenance of engines for the buses of TSRTC. These solutions are all planned to be procured from startup companies

Rama Devi Lanka, Director - Emerging Technologies, Officer on Special Duty (OSD), ITE&C Department, Government of Telangana

The IoT products and services will also be procured from the startup companies

COMPUTER RESELLER NEWS I OCTOBER, 2019 I crn.in I 11

Cover Story

OTIS: BUILDING ‘SMART’ ELEVATORS OF THE FUTURE Otis is working on developing smart elevators, capable of communicating with passengers, building managers, service staff and other building systems Sandhya Michu sandhya.michu@expressindia.com

T

he wave of digital transformation is gaining pace in the industrial space as there have been noticeable deployment of IoT in the manufacturing industry, along with

advanced data analytics, digital twin and various components of the industrial internet. New technologies are transforming the way we move, and rapid urbanisation has made the iconic bird-cage elevator and escalator major Otis to transform into a digital company. Otis Elevator Company is

12 I COMPUTER RESELLER NEWS I OCTOBER, 2019 I crn.in

reinventing itself as a digital industrial company to meet the needs of customers in the digital economy and the era of intelligent buildings, smart cities and hyperconnectivity. It is integrating new digital capabilities with equipment and new customer tools to improve transparency and response time.

IoT

Speaking exclusively to Express Computer, Sebi Joseph, President, Otis India says, “In our industry, we are uniquely positioned to understand traffic patterns inside the walls of a building. We collect lots of data to understand how buildings operate, how buildings are used, and how people move through buildings; so we can get them to their destinations quickly, safely and comfortably.”

Otis is now working on developing smart elevators which are capable of communicating with passengers, building managers, service staff and other building systems.

When asked how Otis is leveraging emerging technologies, Joseph informs that Otis is harnessing the power of data analytics, machine learning and cloud computing to predict and prevent shutdowns. It is using this information to analyse trends on lakhs of connected elevators to create advanced algorithms that can predict performance trends. For example, an elevator shuts down an average of 3½ times a year. And 70 per cent of the time, it’s because of a doorrelated problem. Otis uses algorithms that can tell – with close to 90 per cent probability – when there’s going to be a problem with a particular door.

We have built a powerful digital ecosystem that allows us to manage maintenance history, account details and other data in real time, so when customers ask about a support issue, we can confidently provide solutions that are transparent and accurate up to the minute. This same information is tied to apps used by mechanics remotely in the field. Instead of receiving a service call and arriving with no information, mechanics will be notified about the issue and parts needed before setting foot in the building,” Joseph shares.

In terms of technology trends, one of the emerging trends in the industry is collaboration on opportunities to enhance connectivity through the use of IoT products – services and technologies that employ digital technologies to better connect with customers and with elevators,

escalators and moving walkway equipment. Through IoT and more connectivity, customers gain transparency, information and a streamlined process, while maintaining and advancing the personal relationship. Otis is working with leading IT providers, including Microsoft and AT&T to develop its digital platform to enable connected elevators of the future.

A large part of Otis’ business is service and it is reinventing how service solutions are offered to customers. The company is using IoT and data from the largest service portfolio in the world to enhance its ability to actively monitor and predict maintenance needs for each individual customer. Otis engineers are working to develop the next generation of elevators – ‘smart’ elevators. This new generation, will for the first time, connect manufacturing to installation to service. A smart elevator is capable of communicating with passengers, building managers, service staff and other building systems to improve the passenger experience and elevator performance, especially through improved elevator maintenance.

Building on the theme of connectivity, it is incorporating smart, connected technology that delivers proactive, quick and effective diagnostics and repair.

On the repair and maintenance front, the company has adopted several digital initiatives. For instance, when mechanics are on site, they have digital tools and proprietary Otis apps to do their job more efficiently, to fix issues before they cause shutdowns and get elevators back into service faster when they shut down, thereby resulting in reduced downtime.“Our team has built, piloted and continues to enhance our service apps portfolio with tools that help technicians be more proactive and effective with apps that expedite and enhance parts ordering, customer communication, predictive maintenance, ride quality as well as apps focused exclusively on employee safety to empower our employees to work smarter,,” adds Joseph.

In our industry, we are uniquely positioned to understand traffic patterns inside the walls of a building. We collect lots of data to understand how buildings operate, how buildings are used, and how people move through buildings; so we can get them to their destinations quickly, safely and comfortably Sebi Joseph President, Otis India

We are integrating new digital capabilities with equipment and customer tools to improve transparency and response time

COMPUTER RESELLER NEWS I OCTOBER, 2019 I crn.in I 13

Cover Story

IoT

SHELL LUBRICANTS DIGITISES CUSTOMER SERVICES TO MEET INDUSTRY 4.0 With Internet of Things (IoT) and artificial intelligence becoming trending technologies for large manufacturing and industrial sectors to meet the growing needs, Shell looks to redefine the services and products offerings digitally Sandhya Michu sandhya.michu@expressindia.com

S

hell, a global petroleum and lubricants major, is digitising its customer interface with new next-generation services for B2B sectors. The portfolio gives customers a comprehensive set of technologically advanced solutions to optimise performance across industry-wide value chains.

The newly launched portfolio consolidates Shell’s lineup of solutions, including LubeAnalyst, LubeAdvisor, LubeChat, LubeCoach, MachineMax, LubeMaster, LubeMatch, Lube Management Programme and LubeExpert are technology advanced and allow customers to optimise the machinery with less downtime.

“As far as lubricant digitisation is concerned – with India’s transition to Industry 4.0 – we have been working to integrate millions of data points by using AI and IoT to analyse the data, optimise the efficiency of machinery and automate the recommendations for our customers. Another area is improving our backend support with the help of wearable devices for the inspection of machinery. From customer interface

14 I COMPUTER RESELLER NEWS I OCTOBER, 2019 I crn.in

perspective, we are looking at end-toend value chain including track-andtrace mechanism and creation of applications. These digital initiatives will help in monitoring productivity, maintenance support, and real-time automation enabled digital services,” says Praveen Nagpal, Chief Technology Officer, Shell Lubricants India.

Today, there are discussions on the value that lubricants can bring to customers. For instance, one of its customers wants to transform from car service provider to mobility solution provider. Thereby such changes drive the lubricant provider to look at solutions and products that meet the customer’s needs with wider options.

“As a part of our roadmap for technology, customers sit at the centre and there are certain technologies which we are using at the pilot stage in India and other markets and we will start getting the feedback and enhance the experience with advanced technologies,” adds Nagpal.

The Lube Management Program is one of the many of its B2B offerings; the others include services such as monitoring oil condition and providing predictive maintenance of equipment, lube advisory services by Shell’s experts.

As a part of our roadmap for technology, customers sit at the centre and there are certain technologies which we are using at the pilot stage in India and other markets and we will start getting the feedback and enhance the experience with advanced technologies Praveen Nagpal Chief Technology Officer, Shell Lubricants India

We are improving our backend support with the help of wearable devices for the inspection of machinery

Cover Story

WHAT IOT MEANS FOR CHANNEL PARTNERS

IoT

When it comes to solution providers of IoT, collaboration is the essence. A report on how solution providers are going about implementing IoT and Industrial IoT in India

By Moumita Deb Choudhury COMPUTER RESELLER NEWS I OCTOBER, 2019 I crn.in I 15

Cover Story

“Industrial IoT (IIoT) is becoming a part of the digital transformation for the enterprises. However, for the IIoT implementation, there is an information technology, operational technology divide.

Shantanu Som, Founder & Director, Som Imaging Informatics

A

IoT is in the trending phase right now. This line of business is catching up very fast.”

RS Shanbhag, Founder, Chairman & CEO, Value Point Systems

utomation is the flavour of the era we are in. Be it at an individual level or an organisational level, automation is expected to become smarter day0byday. And with business landscape today becoming extremely competitive, exceptional customer experience is what required. To beat the competition and stand out in the market, robust technology and utmost customisation is a must.

When it comes to technologies like IoT, it cannot be one size fits all formula.

It pays well when it is industry specific.

IoT is growing rapidly due to its inherent usability and usefulness quotient. Also, its growth is attributed to the slopping cost of hardware, ease of connectivity among the devices and on-premise and cloud systems becoming easier.

As per NASSCOM report on IoT landscape, India will be a front runner in IoT adoption in Asia Pacific (APAC). The IoT market size in India is expected to grow at rate of 62 per cent CAGR and reach US$ 9 billion by 2020. The number of IoT connections are expected to grow at a CAGR of 137 per cent, increasing

16 I COMPUTER RESELLER NEWS I OCTOBER, 2019 I crn.in

from US$ 60 million in 2016 to US$ 1.9 billion in 2020.

“The IoT market in India has been growing steadily over the last few years but at a slower rate than the American and European markets,” says Anuradha Kaur, Managing Director, One Network Consulting. One Network is a 24-yearold company consisting of three divisions- distribution, system integration and managed services. It has a global presence in the UK, UAE and Singapore.

Shantanu Som, Founder & Director, Som Imaging Informatics points out, “Industrial IoT (IIoT) is becoming a part of the digital transformation for the enterprises. However, for the IIoT implementation, there is an information technology, operational technology divide. Most of the organisations are trying to mitigate this divide by appointing a Chief Digital Officer (CDO), whereby the job of the CDO would be to bring in the operational technology and information technology team together and make them work towards a common goal.”

Som Imaging Informatics is a

IoT

Software OEM and Solution provider.

The company operates through a network of offices and operation centers spread across major cities of India and through its clusters of business partners across the globe.

Collaboration is the key When it comes to solution providers of IoT, collaboration is the essence.“In terms of IoT, our goal is to build out the ecosystem and work closely with our partners as a value-added distributor.

We have been working with different technology partners across all verticals to provide our customers with a holistic solution. We are technology partners with MultiTech Systems and PNI Corp which enables us to service our customer’s IoT requirements,” informs Kaur.

In the entire IoT deployment paradigm, there are solution providers who provide end-to-end solutions while there are others who form a part of the procedure. Although even for those who renders end-to-end solutions cannot really be “end-to-end”. Simply put- even for those providers who offer

comprehensive solutions would have to procure devices or sensors or for that matter hire a third party for installing or mounting sensors in the things. And today it is true for the technology universe that goals cannot be achieved by operating in silos.

“We have our own solution and own platform and own IPR. But we are collaborating with other players in the domain. In IoT landscape no one is selfsufficient,” says Som. “Ideally IoT consists of four layersone is the sensor and instrument layer (hardware devices), the second layer is the edge (few processing is completed on the edge), the third layer is the transport layer (network) where some filtered data is sent from edge to the cloud and the fourth layer is the IoT cloud application (for analytics and insight, device management, global rules) etc,” explains Som. “We provide IoT sensing application on the cloud called OmniSense. Of course we do not manufacture sensors, we design it and for installation we depend on a third party,” he adds.

Given the potential of the IoT market,

“We are not using products and solutions of any principal vendors like IBM or Siemens or Honeywell but we have built two solutions - one for an NGO and the other for a microbrewery. The former solution is for weather monitoring stations and the latter is an IoT based platform to measure specific gravity and temperature having a pilferage detector as well.”

Mohan Rajamani, Director, Cache Technologies and Communications

Given the potential of the IoT market, new players are vying an entry into the ecosystem. One such category of players is the IMS service providers for whom IOT is the next logical step.

COMPUTER RESELLER NEWS I OCTOBER, 2019 I crn.in I 17

Cover Story

new players are vying an entry into the ecosystem. One such category of players is the IMS service providers for whom IOT is the next logical step having deep expertise in managing multiple infrastructure projects and associated hardware installation.

According to RS Shanbhag, Founder, Chairman & CEO of Value Point Systems, “IoT is in the trending phase right now.

This line of business is catching up very fast.”

“By April next year, we (Valuepoint) will be launching our own collaboration ecosystem. We are referring to use cases in the Europe or the USA market and intend to replicate it in India. This is more relevant for us since we serve several global customers for their IT infrastructure, cyber security requirements in the typical IMS space. I will also look to be part of the IoT solutions in the industrial automation process whereby I will gaze the trending requirement of the industries and collaborate with people who are already into industrial automation. We will explore the IoT solutions which will be rolled out IT infrastructure vendors and will look for a good collaboration with them and try to map the industries we are already serving for new opportunities,” he claims.

He further adds, “Post one year of this practice I will access if we have any opportunity of building our own IP and build on some end-to-end solutions.”

IoT

The IoT market in India has been growing steadily over the last few years but at a slower rate than the American and European markets Anuradha Kaur, Managing Director, One Network Consulting

IoT opportunities Highlighting the opportunities, Kaur says, “We have seen a lot of progress in verticals such as smart energy and water metering, smart agriculture, smart healthcare, logistics and most importantly and prominently in smart cities but there is still a great amount of knowledge-sharing and collaboration required to bring the applications to life. With that in mind, One Network aims at being a one-stop-shop to our customers, and have therefore built an in-house team of solution architects and hardware designers that work round the clock to enable our customers to achieve their end result.”

One Network focuses on the LoRaWAN technology as opposed to

18 I COMPUTER RESELLER NEWS I OCTOBER, 2019 I crn.in

One Network focuses on the LoRaWAN technology due to its benefit of being scalable at a comparatively low cost. The company has become an adopter member of the LoRa Alliance.

others due to its benefit of being scalable at a comparatively low cost.

“With that in mind and to further be entrenched in the IoT ecosystem, we have become an adopter member of the LoRa Alliance, which is an open nonprofit association with more than 500 member companies and is committed to enable large-scale deployments and promotion of the LoRaWAN open standard,” informs Kaur.

It is also interesting to see how channel partners are manoeuvring this entire IoT scenario as per their capabilities and their customer’s requirements.

Mohan Rajamani, Director, Cache Technologies and Communications shares, “We are not using products and solutions of any principal vendors like IBM or Siemens or Honeywell etc right now, but we have built two solutions.

One for an NGO and the other for a microbrewery. The former solution is for weather monitoring stations, which is basically an air quality monitoring system, in terms of measuring the polluting particles and providing realtime report. With that we have been able to shut down one a polluting factory in Whitefield, Bangalore. The latter is an IoT based platform to measure specific gravity and temperature and there is also a pilferage detector. With this, the brewery has been to circumvent the losses incurred due to pilferage issues.”

Elaborating on the technology used Rajamani says, “The air quality detector solutions is built on opensource with the help of Arduino boards. There are multiple sensors involved and we have developers in-house who built solutions for air quality monitoring. For the microbrewery iOS and android app, along with IoT sensors for all tanks whereby actual temperature can be measured real-time and gives alert in case of any inconsistencies.”

The sales cycle in IIoT is relatively slow, says Rajamani. Perhaps that is why IoT is still to catch up as their main line of business. However, it may just be a matter of time when the tech seeps into consumer space and brings up more opportunities for the providers and ease for the users.

News Analysis

IBM

IBM’S RED HAT ACQUISITION UNLEASHES THE BUSINESS VALUE OF CLOUD FOR PARTNERS IBM's next-generation partner framework will make it easier and faster for partners to reach more clients and get rewarded for their investments Sandhya Michu sandhya.michu@expressindia.com

I

BM’s acquisition of Red Hat is the most significant step in its endeavour to lead in this highvalue segment of the IT industry.

One of the most significant challenges associated with hybrid multi-cloud deployments is achieving interoperability, portability and security compliance of applications across multiple cloud environments.

The use of open-source cloud development platforms provides an effective way to overcome these challenges as well as manage workloads across multiple clouds.

“This is a game-changer for the cloud market as we are two best-inclass hybrid cloud providers that together will help companies move to the next chapter of the cloud while addressing the issues around portability, management consistency, security and remaining open to avoid vendor lock-in. This will enhance the growth of Red Hat’s and IBM’s businesses as we sell more of our data and AI software on containers across multiple platforms, and more of our services, from app modernisation to multi-cloud managed services,” says Karan Bajwa, MD, IBM India.

Rajish Rajan, Chief Solutions Officer, Cateina Technologies – one of IBM’s hybrid cloud integration partners, states, “We are also looking forward to

Lata Singh,Director – One Channel, IBM India / South Asia the shift to open source, being fuelled

by IBM’s acquisition of Red Hat. We already have a strong relationship with Red Hat and the sync-up of both companies can open up new opportunities. We are expecting the AI stack to be a game changer in the coming years. We started with building a product on API mining, which is something that goes hand-in- hand with API gateways and the hybrid integration. Going forward, Watson would be of interest for this, and so will everything on the AI platform.”

Seconding Rajan’s thought Tanmay Sharma, EVP – Sales, iMicron, a cloud specialist, comments, “We also see the

opportunities available on open-shift Kubernetes which is going to become the next story where we can offer customers the next level of cloud services, with complete neutrality and independence in terms of infrastructuremanagement. We intend to work alongside IBM and transform the next level of cloud environment by offering differentiated software and hardware service.”

While partners and IBM are gearing up for building synergies and opening new line of services and products, IBM is also pushing its partners to take on the digital opportunities that are all about Chapter 2 of digital transformation – moving from experimentation to true transformation by leveraging AI, cloud, data, etc. IBM’s channel ecosystem strategy aligns with the goal of advancing its leadership position in high-value segments of the IT industry including multi-cloud, holistic AI, security and blockchain.

“Our next-generation partner framework will make it easier and faster for partners to reach more clients with IBM and be rewarded for their investment. It helps them shift to higher value, higher growth areas and deliver differentiated offerings aligned to AI, cloud, security, etc. This is part of IBM’s objective to create mutual value and provide a better end-to-end experience when working with IBM,” mentions Lata Singh, Director – One Channel, IBM India / South Asia.

COMPUTER RESELLER NEWS I OCTOBER, 2019 I crn.in I 19

Channel Chief

HITACHI VANTARA CO-CREATES MARKET DYNAMICS WITH ITS CHANNEL PARTNERS With social media, analytics and cloud, data has become a big game-changer. Also, with data for IoT and with AI and ML being played in, business decision making processes are becoming big drivers for digital transformation. Hence, it is really important for channel partners to up their game and address customer requirements Moumita Deb Choudhury moumita.choudhury@expressindia.com

H

itachi Vantara, a wholly owned subsidiary of Hitachi Ltd, has prowess in the data domain.

The company has been spanning across a phase of transformation whereby it has undergone a change in name, composition and go-to-market strategy.

“From being a pure storage company, we are now almost a digital company. And with that, we had to also change a lot of our structures accordingly. The biggest challenge with companies that have been around for the last 19-20 years is that, there is a propensity to get used to a particular style. Customers slot you in a particular way and partners see you in a particular light. So when we now go to market as Hitachi Vantara, we start from the very basics – explain to them, who we are, what our agenda is and and what are we up to. That is the most exciting part, because people are excited about it. They want to have a discussion about our entire data strategy, which is now coming up in a big way,” explains Anupam Nagar, Senior Director – Channels and Alliances, Hitachi Vantara.

“The most interesting part of digital

Anupam Nagar,Senior Director – Channels, Alliances,Hitachi Vantara transformation is that digitization leads to proliferation of data. And it is this data that drives a digital transformation. Here is the advantage that we have,” he adds. Rightly so, data is the new fuel and it works wonders for both the parties – the one who processes it into meaningful data and the one who consumes it.

“Many people who have access to these tools and technologies can

20 I COMPUTER RESELLER NEWS I OCTOBER, 2019 I crn.in

actually reap great business advantages – that is our entire picture of DataOps. At one end, there are data generators and on the other, there are the data consumers. DataOps is the process to make an agile, automated transformation between the creator and the consumers,” he points out.

“As part of our strength area, from the beginning, we have been a champion in terms of storage. We are the only company which gives guarantee on data availability. From there, we are now expanding our footprint to not just data storage, but to activate and enrich that data, and then help the customer monetise that data.

Now, with our portfolio being more elaborate, our entire go-to-market strategy has got realigned. We are looking at channel partners who can have a conversation with the customers regarding DataOps, data management or the data advantage discussion,” he claims.

Co-creation strategy Hitachi's emphasis is also on making its partners the curators of data, so that they can address the customers' changing needs and requirements.

“Co-creation is a real activity wherein the tools and technologies and solutions that we provide to the

Hitachi Vantara

channel partners are translated to business benefits for customers. We are trying to loop in partners who can put in some of their IP, and all the aligned areas of complementing solutions from different alliance partners, to co-create a solution. We provide partners with the building blocks, tools and technologies, which they will have to set up accordingly to solve a business problem for customers,” he explains.

“Monetization of data may mean several things. To cut down the cost of data also means monetising – saving money, is making money. Now customers have their own preferences as to how they want a particular project to be. Also here is where cocreation comes in. Partners need to have a consultative approach. They need to sit with the customer and understand the problem and sight. Of course, there is no guidebook which says how you can monetize. The channel partner needs to sit and analyse and arrive at a solution. The good thing is, all the tools that

HITACHI'S EMPHASIS IS ALSO ON MAKING ITS PARTNERS THE CURATORS OF DATA, SO THAT THEY CAN ADDRESS THE CUSTOMERS' CHANGING NEEDS AND REQUIREMENT. THE COMPANY IS TRYING TO LOOP IN PARTNERS WHO CAN PUT IN SOME OF THEIR IP, AND ALL THE ALIGNED AREAS OF COMPLEMENTING SOLUTIONS FROM DIFFERENT ALLIANCE PARTNERS, TO CO-CREATE A SOLUTION they need are available with us,” asserts Nagar.

Channel business transformation The channel is evolving with time, and channel friendly companies like

Hitachi are at the forefront to help them in their transition and help them achieve their goals. “That is why partners come to us from different areas as they want to have a new line of business. There are traditional strong SIs who want to branch out into a new solution area; there are small VARs who may come up with a different idea to expand their business; and there are born-in-cloud partners, who want to expand their reach, or ensure that the investment they have made in building customers, they can provide more solutions to that same base. We have to address them,” he stresses.

“Our channel partners have always viewed us as players in the high end of the marketplace. With Hitachi's array of solutions, our partners are actually capable of providing all those services.

As documented, we provide very limited professional services to our clients directly, and that too only as a backup if our partners do not pick up those services, but our approach is to have all our partners provide the services end-to-end,” Nagar concludes.

COMPUTER RESELLER NEWS I OCTOBER, 2019 I crn.in I 21

Channel Chief

‘BY 2019 END, OUR GOAL IS TO HAVE 20-25 PARTNERS WHO CAN GENERATE 80% OF OUR BUSINESS’ Predominantly established in the consumer market, Kaspersky has been working on strengthening its position as a B2B company in India Mohit Rathod mohit.rathod@expressindia.com

F

rom a overall India market perspective Kaspersky Lab has grown between 12 to 15 per cent year-on-year. Of which, the SMB business has marked more growth – almost over 25 per cent YoY. Whereas, the enterprise business has grown by around eight per cent. However, the consumer business has been stagnant, due to increasing dominance of ecommerce channels. In the B2C space, Kaspersky has recently roped in Supertron Electronics as its new

KASPERSKY HAS AROUND 600 ACTIVE PARTNERS IN THE SMB SPACE; WHEREAS, IT HAS AROUND 4,000 ACTIVE CUSTOMERS IN THE OVERALL B2B MARKET. INTERESTINGLY, OF THESE 600 PARTNERS, 500 ARE PRESENT IN TIER 2 CITIES. ADDITIONALLY, THE COMPANY HAS OVER 1,000 ACTIVE PARTNERS IN THE B2C DOMAIN

KASPERSKY SALES ARMY INCENTIVES Slab (")

Sales Incentive (")

Pre-Sales Incentive (")

25,000 - 49,999 50,000 - 99,999 1,00,000 - 1,99,999 2,00,000 - 2,99,999 3,00,000 - 3,99,999 4,00,000 - 4,99,999 5,00,000 - 9,99,999 10,00,000 - 14,99,999 15,00,000 - 24,99,999 25,00,000 - 34,99,999 35,00,000 - 50,00,000

1,500 4,000 10,000 18,000 28,000 40,000 50,000 100,000 200,000 350,000 500,000

750 2,000 5,000 9,000 14,000 20,000 25,000 50,000 100,000 150,000 200,000

22 I COMPUTER RESELLER NEWS I OCTOBER, 2019 I crn.in

distributor, in order to further enhance the reach. Whereas, on the B2B front, the company recently roped in Ingram Micro.

Commenting on these developments, Anand Shringi, Channel Head – South Asia, Kaspersky, says, “We are working with Ingram Micro to get hold of their partner base. Furthermore, many B2B partners of our competition are also reaching out to us. This is a good time for us to leverage this and onboard the right security partners. Our B2C distributor, VR Infotech, has a stronghold on Tier 1 cities. Even with Supertron we have chalked out a specific go-to-market stretegy for Tier 2 and Tier 3 markets.”

Kaspersky has around 600 active partners in the SMB space; whereas, it has around 4,000 active customers in the overall B2B market. Interestingly, of these 600 partners, 500 are present in Tier 2 cities. Additionally, the company has over 1,000 active partners in the B2C space as well.

Strategies and synergies Kasperky is largely known as a consumer and endpoint security company, but now has a significant focus on the B2B market. Talking about

Kaspersky

How to Become A Partner Financial Minimum annual revenue – from sales of Kaspersky Lab products & services

Country Cluster Tier 1 Tier 2

REGISTERED

SILVER

GOLD

PLATINUM

US$ 50,000 US$ 30,000

US$ 200,000 US$ 100,000

US$ 350,000 US$ 200,000

•

•

•

Recommended

•

•

•

•

General Acceptance of the Partner Program terms and conditions, compliance with Kaspersky Lab policies and guidelines

•

Dedicated Product Manager for Kaspersky Lab Joint Business Planning

Certification Minimum number of "Certified Sales Specialist" Certificates

1

Minimum number of "Certified Sales Specialist" Certificates

how it plans to approach the enterprise market, Shringi comments, “In the last one-and-a-half year, we have expanded our sales team across India. For instance, now we have dedicated representatives in Delhi, Kolkata and Chennai, driving sales from these regions. With this, we are trying to change our brand identity from a consumer and endpoint security company to a B2B security company. Our focus is on identifying four to five partners in each location and drive business through them.”

He further adds, “Until 2018, our focus was on 60 per cent consumer business and 40 per cent of B2B; whereas, this year we are looking at 50:50 business. We are in talks with customers in the B2B space and we are expecting several case studies soon.

When we talk to channel partners and customers, they ask for references; and we do have references in the BFSI, manufacturing and government verticals.”

In the recent years, there has been emergence of other security companies in the market, thereby increasing competition. According to Shringi, eventually, it is all about how a brand is perceived in the market. There

“

WE ARE WORKING WITH INGRAM MICRO TO GETHOLD OFTHEIR PARTNER BASE.FURTHERMORE, MANYB2B PARTNERS OFOUR COMPETITION ARE ALSO REACHING OUTTO US.THIS IS A GOOD TIME FOR US TO LEVERAGE THIS AND ONBOARD THE RIGHTSECURITYPARTNERS ANAND SHRINGI,CHANNEL HEAD – SOUTH ASIA,KASPERSKY

2

3

2

3

is an increased awarness about security among customers; they are being educated about the right solutions. Shringi sees this is a good opportunity for Kaspersky to showcase is solutions.

The company's focus with Ingram Micro is on addressing the enterprise market and enterprise channel partners. Kaspersky is engaging with Ingram Micro to get more partners onboard. Recently, it also conducted a four-city event, covering Mumbai, Hyderabad, Chennai and Bengaluru.

Shringi adds, “As part of this series, Ingram Micro introduced us to 40 new partners from each city. We have also planned more event to tap the North and East region. We are also running specific programs. For instance, along with Ingram Micro, we are running a deal registration program for partners.

We also have a partner program, Kaspersky United and a scheme known as Kaspersky Sales Army. By the end 2019, our goal is to have 20-25 partners across India, who can provide 80 per cent of our business next year.

The plans for next year have been chalked down. We are looking at an overall growth of 18 to 20 per cent YoY.”

COMPUTER RESELLER NEWS I OCTOBER, 2019 I crn.in I 23

Partner Corner

RAH INFOTECH PIONEERS INFORMATION SECURITY VALUE-ADDED DISTRIBUTION Delhi based RAH Infotech is looking to enter into cloud, machine learning, and Internet of Things distribution. The distributor is also giving impetus to promote Indian brands for value-added distribution Sandhya Michu sandhya.michu@expressindia.com

“

O

wing to the government, BFSI and new data regulatory and compliance, Delhi based security-focused distributor RAH Infotech has registered double digit growth in FY 18-19. From a traditional 35 per cent YoY growth, the company has garnered over 70 per cent growth in FY 18-19. This spurt in growth has set new directions for the distributor in terms of adding a new line of business and positioning itself as a complete information lifecycle management provider.

RAH has been into niche valueadded distribution and specialises in the fields of networking, security and data protection. It has distribution partnerships with the world’s leading OEMs for last one decade. Today, it represents 20 information security brands, wherein close to 10 brands constitute 70 per cent of the business.

RAH has been reckoned as an engine for bringing several US and Israeli security brands to Indian shores. The distributor commands a strong logistics, partner network and reach strengths, but its technical expertise is one of the core differentiators, adding more value to its business growth.

"Today one-third of our resources are technical. We add 10-15 new people

CLOUD IS A BIG FOCUS AREA FOR US AND WE WILL SOON BE ENTERING INTO CLOUD DISTRIBUTION AS IT PROMISES HUGE BUSINESS OPPORTUNITIES.TODAY,MID TO LARGE CUSTOMERS ARE ON CLOUD AND WE WILL BE GETTING INTO CLOUD SERVICES BUSINESS TO TAP THESE UNDERLYING OPPORTUNITIES ASHIS GUHA, CEO,RAH INFOTECH

every year to strengthen our technical team. Our technical team has helped us in getting new business and OEMs tieups, adding new partners and customers from segments like BFSI, banks, hospitality, and automobile. We are aiming to become a 360-degree

24 I COMPUTER RESELLER NEWS I OCTOBER, 2019 I crn.in

distribution house with strong understanding of technical know-how," says Ashok Kumar, Managing Director, RAH Infotech.

Apart from seeing healthy growth, the contribution from the government segment has emerged as one big

RAH Infotech

surprise to RAH's growth. In the previous financial years, the government business used to vary from 15-20 per cent for RAH, but this year government/BFSI/ PSUs have given 50 per cent growth.

"The government business has given a new push to our business. We have won new deals with the support from our Tier 1 and Tier 2 partners in the government space. Looking at the current distribution scenarios, many security distributors are picking direct orders, but we are committed to our a partner that has helped in winning partners' trust and getting new orders," says Kumar.

The distributor also conducted its first focused event for its government customers on potential security issues that can impact in delivering the government’s citizen-centric services.

From distribution brand business, after two of its big OEMs Winmagic and Fsecure shut down operations in India.

Check Point, Gemalto, Radware, Forescout, Infoblox, Rapid7, and Skybox are among the largest brands which attract 70 per cent of the business.

RAH has also started adding Indian brands to its kitty. It has started promoting and distributing local brands like Innefu, Smokescreen, Seclore and Vehere recently. "Business is as usual after Winmagic and F-secure closure in India. We have filled the gap with new brands and looking for new areas to step into," shares Kumar.

New areas in distribution Currently, RAH covers the entire chain of information security, but to become an end-to-end security

“

TODAY ONE-THIRD OF OUR RESOURCES ARE TECHNICAL. OUR TECHNICALTEAM HAS HELPED US IN GETTING NEW BUSINESS AND OEMS TIEUPS,ADDING NEW PARTNERS AND CUSTOMERS FROM SEGMENTS LIKE BFSI,BANKS, HOSPITALITY,AND AUTOMOBILE.WE ARE AIMING TO BECOME A 360-DEGREE DISTRIBUTION HOUSE WITH STRONG UNDERSTANDING OF TECHNICAL KNOW-HOW ASHOK KUMAR, MANAGING DIRECTOR,RAH INFOTECH

distributor, it is looking to add storage and backup vendors into its portfolio.

"We are talking to new global vendors and existing vendors to fill the gap. We intend to have solutions for end-to-end backup storage, disaster management and disaster recovery. We will also be adding a US-based networking vendor early next month," informs the newly appointed CEO Ashis Guha, who has worked with large global SIs, security and storage companies before joining RAH. For RAH, the distribution

KEY ATTRIBUTES ◗ Major distribution brands: Check Point, Gemalto, Radware,Forescout, Infoblox, Rapid7 and Skybox ◗ Strength of RAH Infotech: Strong technical and marketing support to its Tier 1 and Tier 2 partnership

◗ 200 active partners: Strong OEMs partnership for pre-post sales support ◗ Capabilities: Built a strong network of partners, logistics and reach. Technical support for building PoC, SOC

relationship with most of the brands has been standing for four-five years, despite the fact that the security industry has witnessed churns of brands, M&A, change in leadership and OEM policy. With its vision to keep looking for value additions for its OEMs, customers and partners have been making it a strong distribution player in security space. The company has also grown its overseas business with the support of global system integrators (GSIs). This business has picked up in the last one year for RAH. It has executed large orders and set up direct offices.

Cloud, AI, ML and IoT are another thrust areas for RAH, where it’s building its technical capabilities and looking to introduce new value-added services to its portfolio. "Cloud is a big focus area for us and we will soon be entering into cloud distribution as it promises huge business opportunities.

Today, mid to large customers are on cloud and we will be entering into cloud service business to tap this opportunity," concludes Guha.

COMPUTER RESELLER NEWS I OCTOBER, 2019 I crn.in I 25

Event

SCHNEIDER ELECTRIC SEES HUGE OPPORTUNITIES AT THE ‘EDGE’ As enterprises demand enhanced digital services, Schneider Electric is betting big on Edge Computing – a technology that it believes would be a transformational business opportunity for the firm

Kevin Brown, Senior VP – International, & CTO, Secure Power Division, Schneider Electric

Jim Simonelli, SVP, Energy Businesses, Secure Power Division, Schneider Electric

Glen Duncan, Associate Research Director, IDC

Srikanth RP srikanth.rp@expressindia.com

center, as sensors can generate enormous amount of data that can easily overwhelm the bandwidth of the network. The cloud can also prove to be expensive in many cases, as the cost of moving data back and forth to the cloud does not make economic sense in all use cases.

Edge Computing has come as a welcome solution, and this is where Schneider Electric, is betting big as the firm believes that this will be an enormous opportunity for Schneider Electric and its partners. This is corroborated by independent statistics from firms such as Gartner which states that by 2025, 75% of enterprisegenerated data will be created and

stored at the edge. Similarly, an IDC FutureScape report states that by 2022, 40% of enterprises will have doubled their IT asset spending in edge locations and nearby co-location facilities versus core datacenters to deliver digital services to local users and things.

Edge Computing was the key area of focus at a recent customer and press meet organized by Schneider in Singapore. Said Nikhil Pathak, VP Strategy, International, Secure Power Division, Schneider Electric, “Edge is at the core of the transformation for businesses. We believe that there are huge opportunities for Schneider Electric in Edge Computing”.

C

onsider these facts. A McKinsey study states that consumers today own an average of four IoT devices that communicate with the cloud. Globally, an estimated 127 new devices connect to the Internet every second. A Cisco study claims that the number of devices connected to IP networks will be more than three times the global population by 2022. The same study also claims that M2M connections will be more than half of the global connected devices and connections by 2022.

This has a big impact on the data

26 I COMPUTER RESELLER NEWS I OCTOBER, 2019 I crn.in

Schneider Electric

Natalya Makarochkina, Senior VP, International, Secure Power, Energy Management Business, Schneider Electric

Glen Duncan, Associate Research Director, IDC, said that “Edge Computing was a new dawn”. He highlighted that empowered customers are demanding targeted contextual interactions, which has led to increase in demand for edge computing solutions. Glen Duncan also predicted a shift in spending towards edge centric locations.

Quoting IDC Research, he said, “By 2022, 40% of enterprises will have doubled their IT asset spending in edge locations and nearby collocation services versus core data centers to deliver digital services to local users”. He cited use cases such as unmanned stores in Thailand where a combination of technologies such as AI, IoT and facial recognition was being used to offer customized and personalized offers to retailers.

While edge computing can bring in huge benefits, all edge environments have some common challenges. These include poor resiliency, lack of remote monitoring and management and lack of standardization. The solution to solve these challenges is a combination of an integrated system, a cloud-based architecture and an ecosystem of partners.

Said Dave Johnson, Executive VP, Secure Power Division, Schneider Electric, “With our flagship IoT

Dave Johnson, Executive VP, Secure Power Division, Schneider Electric

platform, EcoStruxure, we believe that we have a huge opportunity to capture the enormous business opportunity that will arise out of the convergence of OT and IT systems. To help our customers achieve the best out of edge computing solutions, we have over 5,500 trained partners and over 7500 professional and field service experts.”

Kevin Brown, Senior VP – International, & CTO, Secure Power Division, Schneider Electric, seconded the view of Johnson on the challenges that edge sites faced, and highlighted that with EcoStruxure, Schneider Electric, was trying to address the challenges that edge sites had. “The industry needs an integrated ecosystem coupled with management tools and AI to augment staff.

Conventional tools are not going to work at the edge.”

Jim Simonelli, SVP, Energy Businesses, Secure Power Division, Schneider Electric, highlighted the importance of security in edge sites.

“We need integrated systems with secure prescription. The system must be easy for users to select, configure and manage. We need remote monitoring tools with services delivery”. EcoStruxure has been a huge success for Schneider, with the platform managing more than 1,85,000 devices globally for more than 2,500 customers.

Opportunities for partners The confluence of IT and OT is presenting huge opportunities for partners, and Natalya Makarochkina, Senior VP, International, Secure Power, Energy Management Business, Schneider Electric, explained how an integrated partner ecosystem can enable digital transformation at the edge.

“Digitization requires a new ecosystem that can handle more complex processes and provide richer experiences. The future belongs to partners who can support new service based business models. Edge computing presents huge opportunities for partners to create more value from the convergence of IT & OT. From design through deployment, technology integrations and design tools enable greater value and business opportunities. Partners can expect a 2x increase in their gross margins, while customers can benefit from reduction of IT services cost with an increase in availability. We believe that this is a huge opportunity for partners as digitization of OT means that IT partners can go to OT areas which are typically not the domain of IT partners. We see big opportunities for partners in sectors such as education, hospitals and real estate.”

The writer attended the conference in Singapore as a guest of Schneider Electric

COMPUTER RESELLER NEWS I OCTOBER, 2019 I crn.in I 27

News Analysis

AWS

AWS INTENSIFIES FOCUS ON PUBLIC SECTOR Amazon Web Services recently organised its first-ever Public Sector Summit in India where its key public sector clients shared their cloud journey Sandhya Michu sandhya.michu@expressindia.com

P

ublic cloud major, Amazon Web Services(AWS) organised its first-ever Public Sector Summit in India, in New Delhi recently, where its three key customers from the public sector spoke about their cloud and digital transformation journey. Globally, the AWS Public Sector business was established in 2006 under the leadership of Teresa Carlson, Vice President, AWS Worldwide Public Sector. So far, more than 5,000 government agencies, 10,000 academic institutions and 28,000 not-for-profit organisations are on AWS. This first Public Sector Summit in India and 8th worldwide exhibited the growing footprints of AWS in the government sector.

In India, the government sector has been hesitant to the cloud, but with recent government announced policies and laws for local data, privacy and security compliance have encouraged government departments to start migrating some of its non-missioncritical workloads to the cloud to speed up the last mile connectivity for digitising citizen services. Rishikesh Patankar, Vice President, CSC eGovernance Services India, and Chief Operating Officer, CSC Academy; Rahul Kapoor, Director, Smart Cities Mission, Ministry of Housing & Urban Affairs and Vandana Bhatnagar, Chief Program Officer, National Skill Development Corporation (NSDC) were among the customers who shared their journey to cloud and partnership with AWS. Patankar said, “It has been four years for CSC since it’s moved to the cloud. Cloud helps in the scalability of data and online loads. The headache to manage server

“

WORLDWIDE 25 BILLION DEVICES WILLBE CONNECTED IN 2021.HENCE,GLOBAL SPENDING ON CONNECTED DEVICES WILLBE US$ 90 USD BILLION.WE ARE ATTHE TIPPING POINTOFTECHNOLOGYAND INDIAPROMISES HUGE OPPORTUNITIES RAHUL SHARMA,COUNTRY DIRECTOR, WORLDWIDE PUBLIC SECTOR,AMAZON INTERNET SERVICES

and networking room is no longer exists with cloud services coming in. However the large chunk of the data is still on the NIC servers, but the movement of few applications to the cloud has added more efficiency and increase the performance of the services.”

Kapoor from Smart Cities Mission informed, “Out of 100 smart cities project, `20,000 crore has been spent on technology, around 10 per cent of the

28 I COMPUTER RESELLER NEWS I OCTOBER, 2019 I crn.in

project. Currently, there are 23 LIVE Integrated Command and Control Centers (ICCC) and we are planning to add another 20 more such ICCC on the way. We are focusing heavily on technology for building National Urban Innovation stack, India Urban Observatory and Data Exchange Platforms to take the Smart Cities Mission to the next level.”

He further shared how technology has created huge impact on projects like Surat citizen grievances, Swachh Kashi and Surat Vector-Borne disease management. The Smart Cities Mission has recently launched its first India Urban Observatory powered by AWS. Similarly, Vandana Bhatnagar of NSDC spoke about integrating several new technologies such as AI, blockchain, digital payment systems, mobile-based learning systems, etc., to scale the skilling and training capabilities more technology-enabled.

While addressing Rahul Sharma, Country Director, Worldwide Public Sector, Amazon Internet Services spoke about the impact of technology at scale and imperatives of technology in delivering citizen impact at scale, reinvent the tech experience and creating skills for public sector. He said, “Worldwide 25 billion devices will be connected in 2021. Hence, global spending on connected devices will be US$ 90 USD billion. We are at the tipping point of technology and India promises huge opportunities.”

Sharma further stated, “AWS will not replicate or move data anywhere else until customers choose to do so.

Customers are in full control of their data.” To further strengthen its data security commitment, AWS has added 200 services and key features security, compliance, and governance front.

News Analysis

Lenovo

LENOVO’S COMMERCIAL PC BUSINESS GETS BIGGER AND STRONGER The recent ELCOT’s 1.5 million win and government projects top Lenovo’s commercial PC business. The company has further expanded its commercial business by adding IoT solutions Director (Commercial Named Account Business) Stephen Sequeira said, “As we are getting more focused on solution selling’s of the PC. We have built several services around PC to make solutions smart, intelligent and secured. We have additional services like ThinkShield, asset recovery, device as a service and managed services.

Our pie of up sell services increasing over box selling. Moreover, we are investing on adding new people and local manufacturing.”

Sandhya Michu sandhya.michu@expressindia.com

W

orld PC brand Lenovo India has decided to change its focus from selling hardware PC and tablets to solution selling for its commercial PC business. The company has added plethora range of smart range of enterprise products including ThinkPad T490 and X390, ThinkCentre Nano and Nano IoT, ThinkPad P43s and ThinkPad P1 Gen 2 mobile workstations starting from ` 35,000 to ` 2.5 lakhs worth products.

In the commercial business, Chinese PC manufacture has emerged as the market leader in PC and tablet segments in India in Q2 2019 with a market share of 46.2% and 45% respectively, according IDC. Lenovo was followed by HP and Dell in the PC category and Samsung and iBall in the tablet category according to the report.

This leadership position can be attributed to the recent ELCOT deal, where Lenovo provided more than a million laptops for students in Tamil Nadu. This was one the largest PC deal which Lenevo India bagged and executed for ELCOT within three months of the project. We supplied 1.5 million units of laptops to ELCOT. In the previous bids, the size of the units were 4-5 lakhs, but this was first time ELCOT placed this largest PC scheme for free distribution of laptops to students of Tamil Nadu.

Moreover, the company has started

Entering into IoT business

Stephen Sequeira,Director,Commercial Named Account Business,Lenovo India manufacturing its mid range of commercial and tablets PCs from its Pondicherry based plant where it is fulfilling the need of around 500 large global customer accounts locally. The recent government projects, GeM, digitisation of government services, enterprise, start-ups have added more opportunities to Lenovo’s PC business. Lenovo also introduced the Custom-to-order offering in India which vests in it's customer the power to choose the configuration of their interest and create a laptop to match their needs.

Talking about the performance of the commercial business Lenovo India

As the company is more centered on solution selling, it has also added IoT products into its commercial business.

The company has added smart cameras, smart lighting, edge devices and combining these with security solutions for end to end IoT solutions. It has customised solutions for warehouses, retail and manufacturing.

It has recently installed its IoT solution at Amazon’s warehouse as part of global business. However, India has yet to see its initial wins.”

Sequeira adds, “IoT is a fairly new business and we see huge potential for this line of business. Lenovo is making significant IoT investments to win over enterprise IoT clients, especially from among its existing customer relationships and contracts. Lenovo has invested in building up its enterprise IoT offering with new products and services, like its allinclusive IoT Solution Bundles and a new Smart Vertical Group.”

COMPUTER RESELLER NEWS I OCTOBER, 2019 I crn.in I 29

Association News

WILL PC BRAND OWNERS PROTECT ITS OFFLINE CHANNEL FROM ONLINE PREDATORY PRICING? 45 days ahead of online festival sales, FAIITA and its members held a closed door meeting with five PC brand owners and showed its ‘zero tolerance’ against any predatory pricing on laptops during the festival time. Offline stores will take action if brand owners don’t curb online discounting or stop launching cheaper, online-only models.

FAIITA convened with PC brand owners in Delhi Sandhya Michu sandhya.michu@expressindia.com

P

erturbed with the upcoming ecommerce companies festival season sales, Federation of All India Information Technology Associations(FAIITA) have put an endeavor to stop the deep discounting practice of these online marketplace.

The association which represent 30,000

of IT partners across India have met five PC brand owners in the month of August in New Delhi and showed its ‘zero tolerance’ against any predatory pricing on laptops during this week long online festival sales, starting from September 29- October 4th, 2019. The association have received an email confirmation where the brand owners have showed solidarity and support to the FAIITA member’s decisions.

30 I COMPUTER RESELLER NEWS I OCTOBER, 2019 I crn.in

Speaking exclusive to CRN, Alok Gupta, President, PCAIT and Convener, FAIITA said, “We have taken a strong stand against any price disruption during the festival season on any of the online portals. We have taken a zero tolerance approach to any price disruption whatsoever on any online platform including the brand’s own platform. Secondly, FAIITA will not not allow any models’, SKUs’, derivates’

FAIITA

FAIITA’S KEY ACTIVITIES ◗ GST on multifunction printers and

monitors reduced from 20-18% ◗ Controlling of online pricing ◗ Settlement of payment defaults

partners to partners and customers ◗ Settlement of back end rebates ◗ Business among inter-states partners

increased ◗ Promoting Make in India brands ◗ Increase in SIs business opportunity ◗ Reducing plastic wastage in Nehru

place

etc. parity across at GTMs’, be it offline stores,Online, LFR etc. Thirdly, the association has demanded brands owners to share with FAIITA secretary and or their authorised channel within seven days quantity and the SKUs’, Models, derivates sold to online purchase arms and the likely price during the festive season.”

The association conducted a high level meeting with brand owners including representative from HP, Lenovo, Dell, Acer and Asus, along with its 35 state federations members to discuss and reduce the impact of festival sales due to online pricing on the IT channel. “This year, we have given 45 days advanced notice to brand owners so they can plan their festival sales period keeping in mind its traditional channel do not get the burnt on business due to the predatory pricing,” he says.

FAIITA believes if all the brand owners support the offline channel’s demands it members can register 50% increase in sales. The association is making efforts to give breather to its members this festival time and make good sales during festival times. “If all goes fine our channel can make up to previous low sales cycle and restore the confidence in brands,” Gupta adds.

After the meeting, FAIITA has received a letter where all the brand owners including MAIT has confirmed and agreed to its demands. However,

Brand owners attended the meeting

FAIITA members from across India participated in meeting

FAIITA will be vigilant on online pricing and also caution its members to refrain from any predatory pricing practice. In light of any deep discounting given by brand owners, FAIITA will issue appropriate advisory protecting business and profitability of its pan India members.

The traders’ boy argued that the loss accrued to sellers by selling goods at a much cheaper rate is being subsidized by the marketplace or the manufacturers or someone behind the curtain or it has more influx of products

that originate from grey market and hence there is a difference of prices in offline and online trade. We want brand owners to take responsibility for controlling the pricing and protect the survival of its traditional channel which is still 80% of their business.

Apart from FAIITA, another All India trade association Confederation of All India Traders (CAIT) have locked horns with the ecommerce companies that has sought a blanket ban from the government on the upcoming online festive sales.

COMPUTER RESELLER NEWS I OCTOBER, 2019 I crn.in I 31

Event

IRISHTEY2.0: EMPOWERING THE PARTNER COMMUNITY The annual conclave, organized by iValue InfoSolutions at Phuket, witnessed participation from its leading OEMs and partners covering India, SAARC, Middle East, and Africa

Senior dignitaries from the IT industry inaugurating iRishtey 2.0 Mohit Rathod mohit.rathod@expressindia.com

I

ndia’s fastest growing VAD, iValue InfoSolutions recently hosted ‘iRishtey2.0’ in Phuket, Thailand from September 12 to 14, 2019 with CXOs across leading global, national and regional SIs present there. The two-day residential conclave empowered partners with profitable growth areas through collaborative go-to-market strategies between iValue’s OEMs, GTM teams and focused partner network, covering India, SAARC, Middle East and Africa geographies.

The conclave covered a wide gamut of topics from the world of cybersecurity and digital transformation focusing around next-gen security, security analytics, hybrid cloud management, availability and performance management of critical apps, consolidation and automation along with relevant design, deployment and integration services.

Sunil Pillai, Managing Director and Co-Founder, iValue InfoSolutions, said, “We are satisfied with the tremendous quality of delegates attending this year’s edition of iRishtey. The exhilarating two days of quality business and technology discussions on compelling mainstream and emerging technologies conveyed by subject matter experts was of great insight. I hope the top partners have gone back with great insights for profitable growth opportunities in a tough environment. Considering the pace and relevance of digital revolution, iRishtey was a source of ideas to thrive in this transformational era.” iRishtey is a familiar conclave to the channel community. The previous editions were held at Colombo and Bali.

This year the symposium was held at the picturesque Le Méridien Beach Resort, Phuket, Thailand and was live streamed across selected locations. iRishtey has customarily been that single platform that empowers channel partners with technological advancements, arrive at

32 I COMPUTER RESELLER NEWS I OCTOBER, 2019 I crn.in

collaborative go-to-market strategies and discover innovative growth opportunities along with iValue and its OEMs. Nityanand Shetty, Founder & CEO, Essen Vision Software, said. “Our journey with iValue started right from its inception. So it always meant much more than mere business formalities.

The whole management team is like family and doing business has always been a pleasure and fun experience. We do have our friendly banter at times but the relationship stands so strong that there has never been a show stopper.”

IT investments continue to be driven by digital business transformation initiatives from both private and public organisations, India's IT spending alone is projected to become a $89 billion opportunity in 2019, as per Gartner.

While organisations are discovering ways to infer and steer digital transformation over forthcoming years, the IT channel has incredible opportunity to lead and profit from the digital future. iRishtey is ideally placed to serve stakeholders associated with the industry to exchange insights, string partnership and aid the growth of IT industry.

Altaf Halde, Global Business Head, Network Intelligence, commented, “As a valued partner of iValue, it was a great opportunity to be part of iRishtey 2.0 event in Thailand. Meeting the top cybersecurity partners of the region under one roof and hearing from the OEM market leaders including Cyberark, Microfocus, FireEye and other vendors on their offerings, market dynamics & their upcoming region strategies.

Participating in iValue events always

iValue iRishtey 2.0

Krishna Raj Sharma, Director and CEO, iValue InfoSolutions

A power packed panel discussion on the opportunities for partners in the digital era

Leading lights of IT channel community at iRishtey 2.0

helps to gauge the market sentiments and learn about new upcoming technologies. Looking forward to the next iRishtey event.”

iValue's mission is to optimise, protect and transform “digital assets” of organizations, with leading edge and proven offerings, in collaboration with

trusted partners. iValue offerings are aligned, customised and optimised for organisations, across vertical and size, through its OEM, consultant and global, national, regional and local system integrators partnership.

Vishal Bindra, CEO, ACPL, stated, “ACPL has worked closely with iValue for a decade. Our close association has been based on mutual trust and respect. iRishtey event is a must attend for me as it helps take our existing relationships ahead and interact with future-poised Cybersecurity brands. That is the domain of specialisation for ACPL.”

PARTNER TESTIMONIALS iRishtey, an excellent platform created by iValue to draw on the power of collective learning through sharing. This year the platform gave an immense opportunity to GTM partners and technology partners to get together and share from each other’s experience. The disruption of business due to digital transformation and how the businesses are adapting to the change was a great conversation between the technology partners and the GTM partners. We had good conversation with passionate entrepreneurs around the data ops and how data can be the game changer in the digital transformation landscape.

Deepak Sar, Distribution and Alliance Director, Hitachi Vantara iRishtey 2019 has been a great show. It’s a great platform to connect with value partners and refresh the best value that technology partners can bring on table for customers. This year, iRishtey brought forward the need to align with ongoing digital transformation across industry and encouraged a discussion on consolidating solutions around Secure Devops, Hybrid IT, Security Risk & Governance and predictive analytics. It came out clearly that partners

need to move beyond point product transactions and look forward towards customer’s business value alignment.

Congratulations to iValue team for putting up a great show.

Jyoti Prakash, Country Director, Micro Focus While Cybersecurity is getting the required board level attention, strategic questions are being raised around what is the risk exposure score of the company, where are the exposures, are they improving over time and most importantly, how does the organizations compare to its peers when it comes to your cyber security risks? Filled with some interesting discussions, it was a successful event with an attendance of over 100 delegates. iRishtey was packed with partner presentations, panel discussions, industry insights and experiences to help businesses grow and win market share. Good show team iValue.

Diwakar Dayal, Managing Director, Tenable, India iRishtey is a vibrant platform that enables networking with the who’s who of Indian cyber security industry. It is a wonderful

opportunity for us to showcase our brand positioning and discuss the business proposition.

Ajay Dubey, Country Head - NetSec and Channels, Forcepoint Dear IValue team, it was indeed a pleasure to be part of the irishtey event in Phuket. It is interesting and rewarding to meet up with many business partners.

FireEye will definitely be benefitted going forward. We exchanged many ideas and different views during the event. I am sure as FireEye, we will benefit working with many new and existing partners in the market. Thanks for inviting us and would love to be part of irishtey in future as well.

Shrikant Shitole, FireEye iRishtey was a great platform for us to meet and network with relevant stake holders from the partner community addressing the market we are in. We are confident of rapidly expanding our partner ecosystem with the right set of partners, with help of this very well managed and organized event.

Ajit Ramanathan, Cyberark

COMPUTER RESELLER NEWS I OCTOBER, 2019 I crn.in I 33

Event Report

EXPLORE BHARAT: COIMBATORE SCRIPTS A BIG SUCCESS CRN’s Explore Bharat series organised in Coimbatore witnessed a gathering of over 70 SMBs and IT Channel partners. The event was marked by high quality knowledge sharing by the speakers and veterans from the industry

DS Kartikeyan, MD, Bloom Computers India

Gangadharan M, Regional Business Manager, Channel Sales, Business Imaging Solutions Center, Canon

M Natarajan, CEO, ABI Computers and President of Coimbatore Information Technology Association

Moumita Deb Choudhury moumita.choudhury@expressindia.com

attitude towards technology, backed by a resistance towards adopting it due to the cost quotient. “But only after implementing technology do we realise that successes can be achieved even in difficult projects if proper technology is implemented,” he stated.

The event proceeded with presentation from AJ Sirajudeen, Chief Manager, Enterprise Technical Solutions, Samsung India, who spoke on the next generation mobile enterprises.

He explained how mobility devices have become an integral part of everyone's life and how it can be put to the best of use given befitting solutions.

This was followed by the presentation of D Kumaraswamy, Senior Manager-Sales IT Business, Schneider Electric. He shared how being energy efficient is a must for SMBs. Next in line was team Canon consisting of Gangadharan M, Regional Business Manager, Channel Sales, Business Imaging Solutions Center,

Canon India; Sanee Chaurasia, Regional Business Manager, Channel Sales, IMS, Business Imaging Solutions Center and Ramesh AV, Pre-sales Specialist, Document Consulting, Business Imaging Solutions Center, Canon India, they spoke about how Canon is making business simple with Canon office automation products.

The presentations were followed by a panel discussion on ‘How SMBs are embracing technology to gain competitive advantage’. The esteemed panellists included N Raveendran, CIO, Sakthi Finance ltd.; Pranav Singanapalli, CEO, eMotion Motors; Monika Balasubramanian, MD, Aaditiya Aswin Paper Mills Pvt. Ltd.; and Subramani P, GM – IT, Krishnaveni Carbon Products (P) Ltd. The panellists who are major stakeholders in their respective domain of expertise presented the opinion on how technology has been helping their businesses and how it will bring more progress for their companies and the

L

anding on India's very own Manchester-Coimbatore, CRN's Explore Bharat endeavour witnessed yet another big success after its maiden success in Chandigarh. The event saw a gathering of over 70 SMBs and IT Channel partners. The initiative was supported by Samsung, Schneider Electric and Canon. Coimbatore IT Association was a supporter from the very beginning as well.

SMB and tech focus The event kick-started with the keynote speech by Dr. N Raveendran, CIO, Shakthi Finance Ltd. who has over 37 years of experience in IT and IT related management. He spoke about how SMBs are flourishing in Coimbatore and emphasised on the advantages of emerging technologies. He also said that till today there persist a laid back

34 I COMPUTER RESELLER NEWS I OCTOBER, 2019 I crn.in

Explore Bharat - Coimbatore

AJ Sirajudeen, Chief Manager, Enterprise Technical Solutions, Samsung India

Audience engaged in the conference

SMBs of Coimbatore at large. The session was moderated by Nivedan Prakash, Sr. Assistant Editor, CRN. The panel was a mixed bag of experienced stakeholders and as well as enthusiastic young business professionals. A true glimpse of how alongside the experienced gentry, the young minds are also passionately driving the wave across the SMB spectrum in Coimbatore with the aid of tech.

Channel significance The evening was for the IT channel partners of Coimbatore. It opened with a keynote speech by DS Kartikeyan, MD, Bloom Computers India. He is a veteran in the industry with about 30 years of experience under his belt. Having been in the business for so long in Coimbatore, he spoke at length about the market landscape there. He delineated about his journey, the opportunities that are there in the city and backed the discourse by sighting examples from his own experience. “Talk about any technology and almost each one is doing good rounds in Coimbatore.

Of course AI, ML or Robotics are the things which is still to come full-fledged and I have left it to the next generation to take it on,” he commented.

Bloom Computer's software

C Kannan, Senior Manager, Channel Sales, Samsung India

D Kumaraswamy, Senior manager-Sales IT Business, Schneider Electric

Panel Discussion- SME track

development centre, is the second greenest building in the world which is only second to a one in Australia.

The next speaker in line was M Natarajan, CEO, ABI Computers. He is also the president of Coimbatore Information Technology Association, “It is my privilege to get associated with the Express Group event. CRN is doing a great work by highlighting the tier II and III cities. We look forward to more such association in the future,” he said. “He also touched upon how the IT hardware market for channel partners is slouching due to the mushrooming of e-commerce and exclusive retail store. He sought some solutions for it from the vendors.”

The speeches were followed by presentations by the vendors. The first was by C Kannan, Senior Manager, Channel Sales, Samsung India. He highlighted how mobile phones are integral to businesses today. “PC segment is in stress today as it is taken over by smartphones,” she stated.

Taking about the power of technology on businesses today he said, “The largest fleet company has no cars of its own (referring to Uber); one of the most prominent food delivery company does not own any restaurant (referring to Swiggy). Here is where technology and smartphones stand today!” he exclaimed.

The next presenter was D Kumaraswamy of Schneider Electric.

“One of the most pertaining concerns today is energy conservation and this concern can be aptly addressed by energy- efficient solutions,” he said. The company has a line of energy-efficient solutions for the SMBs. The next presenters were Gangadharan M, Sanee Chaurasia and Ramesh AV of Canon. They gave live demonstrations of Canon printers and explained how the products are useful for a hassel-free day-to-day business.

The panellists for the panel discussion on 'Future of IT Channel: Are partners ready to take up digital opportunities', were Suresh Gandhi, Director, Ecaps; Jai Parameswaran, Director, Garudacorp Systems; Mohan Kalyan, Director, Ambra Business Systems and M Natarajan. Coming to the stage they said that the Coimbatore market has many opportunities and they they look forward to more.

Booths of the vendors- Samsung, Schneider Electric and Canon showcased latest technology innovations and guests at the hall had a free hand in experiencing them. The event ended in a positive note amidst cheer and was marked by active networking amongst the various business stakeholders.

COMPUTER RESELLER NEWS I OCTOBER, 2019 I crn.in I 35

Event Report

INDORE PROMISES DIGITAL OPPORTUNITIES FOR SMBS AND PARTNERS CRN’s Explore Bharat is a unique event which brings vendors, SMBs and partners on the common platform to discuss their digital transformation journey, and the recent event in Indore was an excellent showcase of the same

Indore IT association, MPCTA and its members supported the CRN channel event Sandhya Michu sandhya.michu@expressindia.com

C

ontinuing the series, CRN's flagship Explore Bharat campaign organised its third edition in Indore. The event witnessed the confluence of 80 SMBs and IT companies where they deep-dived into technology sessions presented by key sponsors including Samsung Enterprise mobility, Schneider Electric and Canon on August 28, 2019. Explore Bharat is a unique platform which brings vendors, SMBs and partners together, aiming to create a knowledge sharing platform.

Presently, the SMBs section of Indore is gradually picking up the digital transformation journey, however the market is considered to be the largest hub of small and large manufacturing companies and holds ample scope of

embracing technology.

The first part of the event kickstarted with the welcome address followed by a special address made by Deepak Bhandari, President, Global Forum for Industrial Development (GFID). In his address he informed the gathering about the opportunity and challenges faced by Indore companies.

He touched upon the potential of technology in SMBs who are still largely offline and taking small steps in digitising their customer services.

Contrary to gradually shift of SMBs towards digital, ITL Industries has been a pioneer in using technologies to take its business to the next level.

Giving his presentation, Er Rajendra Singh Jain, Managing Director, ITL Industries spoke about the digital journey which started with SAP. Currently, ITL is a heavy user of robotic

36 I COMPUTER RESELLER NEWS I OCTOBER, 2019 I crn.in

machinery and now exploring for the smart factory by using emerging technologies like IoT, cloud, 3D printing, AI and facial recognition.

The next speaker was Shaikhali Barodwala, General Manager, HeadSales, West Region, Samsung Enterprise Mobility. In a very descriptive way, he informed the about spread and reach of its mobility solutions and offerings for SMBs and how these products are improving the overall productivity and driving excellent results in the SMB space and others. He talked about the power of Samsung Knox mobile security platform making Samsung smartphones, tablets and wearables among the most reliable mobile devices available.

Following this, Manuj Misra, AGMSales, Schneider Electric took over the stage and showcased the energy

Explore Bharat - Indore

Manuj Misra, AGM- Sales, Schneider Electric

efficient and connected offerings suited to SMBs customers. In the descriptive presentation he spoke about the changing need of data center and energy-efficient solutions which are cost-effective for the SMB. Next in line was Miland Bokli, Regional Business Manager, Channel Sales, Canon India along with Chandramani Pandit, who highlighted unique latest office automation products for home enterprises or small businesses equipped with network capabilities and allows multiple users to share the printer on an existing network suited for optimal resource sharing purposes. The highlight of the presentation was its document management solutions for digitising and archiving it with ease.

After the technology sessions, the SMB track was concluded with an interactive panel discussion. The distinguished panelists were representing fields such as dairy, cotton farming and electronics in Indore.

Pallavi Vyas, Managing Director, Shanta Farma,; Rajendra Jain, Managing director, ITL Industries and Kailash Agarwala, Managing director, KK Fibers shared their digital journey covering the challenges and business benefits that technology has provided to their business expansions. Finding right talent and expensive technologies were among the common issues highlighted by the panelists. Panelists were of the collective view that digital transformation is a reality and SMBs are looking for ways to transform their offline business online.

The partner's track was held in association with Madhya Pradesh

Miland Bokli,Regional Business Manager, Channel Sales, Canon India

Shaikhali Barodwala, General Manager, HeadSales, West Region, Samsung Enterprise Mobility

Rajendra Jain, Managing Director, ITL Industries; Pallavi Vyas,Managing Director, Shanta Farms Kailash Agarwala, Managing Director, KK Fibers shared their digital journey. The panel discussion was moderated by Sandhya Michu of CRN (From right to left)

Computer Traders Association (MPCTA), the apex body of computer traders in the Indore. Ashish Saxena, president, MPCTA and managing director, Advanced Technology Computers, representing the partners of Indore, highlighted that the association has always played an instrumental role in conducting its annual event FONOCOM and encouraging its members to look for innovative ways to grow their business. He also thanked CRN for organising such an event in their city for the first time.

Following MPCTA's session, D Vishranth, General Manager, Channel Sales, Samsung Enterprise Business was the next speaker and shared the mobility solutions for the channel and how the channel can leverage the enterprise mobility solutions as a new business avenue. His presentation was interesting and partners were excited to take demos of the solution at Samsung's demo counter.

Manuj Mirsa, AGM-Sales, Schneider Electric, and Prashant Bhojne, Bhavik

Hirji Dedhia and Chandramani Pandit from Canon India also presented their innovate range of solutions before the Indore channel partners. Live demo kiosks were also set up by them for demonstrating the new range of devices and solutions.

After Schneider Electric and Canon sessions, a panel discussion was also conducted where leading Indore based IT channel partners shared their experiences on how digital transformation at their customers are driving their business to look for new solutions and technologies. Cloud, document management, building applications, and GeM have become a new avenue. Manish Goyal of Byte Indore, Rajesh Bohra from Skyline Systems, Ravi Nandi of Business Automation, Vaibhav Nagori of AVM Infotech and Amit Bidasaria of VSN International were among the panelist.

Both SMB and partners panel discussions were moderated by Sandhya Michu, Principal Correspondent, CRN.

COMPUTER RESELLER NEWS I OCTOBER, 2019 I crn.in I 37

Channel Chief

CoSoSys

‘OUR OBJECTIVE IS TO DEVELOP THE EXISTING PARTNERS IN INDIA’ With an objective to further develop the existing channel ecosystem and implement the best strategies, CoSoSys is bullish on its growth path in the Indian market. In an exclusive interaction with CRN India, Filip Cotfas, Channel Manager, CoSoSys, shares more insights

By Mohit Rathod How has been CoSoSys’ business growth in the Indian market?

CoSoSys has been present in the Indian market for a few years now and we are happy to present our Data Loss Prevention products to key stakeholders. Endpoint Protector, our flagship product, is a great choice for different types of business industries and size categories. Our main objective is to develop the existing channel partners and implement the best strategies for this market. Our partners are actively working with the sales team, and they participate in technical and sales training activities. At the moment we are working with Indian companies from industries like finance, entertainment and media, etc.

Please elaborate on CoSoSys’ active channel presence in India In India, we work through a distribution channel to deliver effective support and results for channel partners. Taking into consideration that India is a big market, this proved to be the best strategy for our business. Through our distributors, we are working with a channel base of more than 500 active partners, who help us promote our brand and business. We are highly devoted in engaging and motivating the channel through different incentive plans, dedicated for both – the companies as well as their sales and pre-sales teams.

Filip Cotfas,Channel Manager,CoSoSys

Highlight your partner program and its differentiating elements for channel partners?

We have partners all over the world.

Our program is helping us enhance our brand in different markets, extend our sales footprint and grow our customer base. We carefully listen to our channel’s market needs and we are making a significant investment to enhance our partner program, so they can succeed as they adapt to the challenges of digitalisation. Our partner program is free to join, and we offer access to marketing and technical documents. All our partners are trained by our team and they receive several certifications to help them gain more benefits.

How are you ensuring reskilling of your channel community in India, and empowering them to strengthen their business?

38 I COMPUTER RESELLER NEWS I OCTOBER, 2019 I crn.in

From the beginning, we tried to ensure that our partners, including resellers and distributors, understand the value of our DLP products and we focused on building relationships with them to know what they need. They always receive the latest product updates to make sure they are up-todate. We invest resources in continuing education, digital marketing platforms and brand awareness activities. We are willing to develop a robust online presence in the Indian market to help our channel partners reach their goals.

We also conduct periodic trainings to help the partners be up-to-date with the latest changes of our products.

Going forward, do you plan to onboard new partners, particularly in Tier 2 and Tier 3 cities?

Our channel partner program is designed to accelerate our business and we are always looking to work with partners that can help us improve our DLP solutions, ensure our products integrate flawlessly into our client’s environment, and enable us to better market our products to new customers.

India is a vast market, and it is also very relationship based, that is why we are constantly conducting activities dedicated to new partner enablement, so we can reach as many customers as possible directly, through the help of local partners, hence providing greater value to them.

REGD.NO.MCS/220/2018-20, PUBLISHED ON 7TH OF EVERY MONTH & POSTED AT MUMBAI PATRIKA CHANNEL SORTING OFFICE, DUE DATE 8TH, 9TH & 10TH OF EVERY MONTH, REGD. WITH RNI UNDER NO. MAHENG/75607/2018.